A Michigan pastor claimed he lost $11,500 trading options after paying for $12,000 of classes advertised at a Get Motivated seminar.

The Tampa, Fla.-based company shut down July 2, said Rick Nash, a spokesman. A sister firm that sold financial courses, WealthRock of Draper, Utah, also terminated most of its staff, Nash said. The companies employed more than 250.

“It’s a hard business to make a profit,” said John LaRosa, research director at Marketdata Enterprises in Tampa.

The Washington Speakers Bureau was owed $1.7 million for speeches made between November 2011 and February 2012, according to claims in legal documents.

The bureau represents well-known people who spoke at the events, including Giuliani, a former New York mayor, Powell, a former U.S. secretary of state, and former first lady Laura Bush, who made their last Get Motivated appearances on Feb. 16.